Waterfall
by VandyFNP
Summary: Jayne doesn't care much for waterfalls, but he does care for Kaylee. When Kaylee decides to spend their time together off ship at a waterfall, he doesn't argue. Sequel to "Unexpected." Jayne's PoV.


Jayne lounged on Kaylee's bed watching her put her hair up. Since they had become "sweeties," as Kaylee called it, they spent half their down-time in each others' bunks. Not because they had become intimate yet, but because that was the only way they could get any privacy on a boat with six other people on board. Today; however, the captain had finally found a planet he deemed safe enough to allow the entire crew time off ship for a little R and R. Jayne and Kaylee planned to pack a picnic lunch and take a hike through the woods to a waterfall that Zoe had assured Kaylee was "beautiful." Jayne didn't care much for picnics, hikes, or waterfalls, but Kaylee wanted to go and he wasn't about to rain on her parade.

"We're just going for a walk in the woods; not to some fancy shin dig," he teased as her hairstyle turned more elaborate than a simple pony tail. In fact, he was glad she liked to make herself up for him without expecting him to dress up in return. He wasn't really the dressing up sort.

"I know. It's just that we hardly ever get to spend any time together off ship. We're usually so focused on whatever job we're pulling, and typically you're part in it is completely different from mine."

Jayne grinned and flicked a hair band at her. Kaylee's sweet, cheerful disposition was one of the things that had drawn him to her. She wasn't likely to say boo to a goose, much less win any fist fights. She was a genius with machines, but not likely to be much help if a job went South. She was also the kindest, most unselfish woman he had ever met. She truly cared for each and every other person on the crew. He had always gotten along better with her than anyone else on board. Once, when he had been sick with a horrible stomach bug, she brought him ice chips and toast. She had sat there holding a cold cloth on the back of his neck and rubbing his back while he threw up into a bucket. She hadn't seemed the least bit concerned about catching the virus herself. Jayne had never met another woman like her.

He thought back to when they had first become a couple several months ago. He had gone into the engine room with the intention of telling Kaylee how he felt, but then she had hurt her hand. The whole time he was bandaging her up he had been trying to think of what to say. Jayne had never really been good with words. In the end, he just did what came naturally and kissed her. Then after giving a brief explanation for his actions, he had turned and walked off hoping she'd follow.

Kaylee's voice brought him back to the present.

"What do you think?"

She had put most of her hair back into a twist and left a few soft tendrils loose to frame her face.

"Pretty as always," he answered. He was rewarded with a smile and soft kiss.

"Come on then. Let's get a move on." She picked up a small pack filled with money, a couple flashlights, and a blanket as well as a basket. They intended to go to a local market and buy fresh food for their picnic. Both of them were sick of the dense protein that was their usual fare. Jayne took the pack from her and slung it over one shoulder, then took her hand in his and led her out of the ship.

"You two kids behave now," Wash joked as he and Zoe headed off in the opposite direction.

"Not likely!" Jayne called back.

Kaylee bumped her hip against his leg playfully. "Stop it! You'll give them the wrong idea."

"I'm just sayin'-when have you ever known me to behave?"

"Hmm." She scrunched her eyes up in mock concentration. "Let me see...never."

They headed to the small town with their combined money and searched through the stalls of a make-shift farmer's market. Kaylee bought freshly baked bread, and a small round of light yellow cheese.

They walked over to a stall that was selling fresh produce. Most of the fruits and vegetables they ate aboard ship were canned. Whenever anyone brought anything fresh on board it always went fast. Jayne knew Kaylee loved strawberries, so he went over to a display and searched through several pints trying to choose the one that appeared most fresh. He walked back over to Kaylee, who was putting carrots and cauliflower in the small basket they were using to hold their purchases. He noted a small tub of some brown concoction in the basket. He pointed to it,

"What's that?"

"Hummus," Kaylee answered. "It's a sort of dip. Inara gave me some once. It tastes good on the vegetables."

Jayne wrinkled his nose, "I'll take your word for it. I don't plan on eating much of that rabbit food anyway."

Kaylee picked up a small apple pie and head toward the counter. Once they paid, they asked directions to the hiking trail Zoe had mentioned to Kaylee.

As they entered the woods, Kaylee inhaled deeply. "I love the smell of pine needles. Our house back home sits right up next to a large wooded area, mostly pine trees. Whenever I smell fresh pine needles, it always reminds me of home."

Jayne imagined Kaylee as a little girl running through the woods with her two younger siblings and smiled.

They didn't meet a single soul on their walk up to the waterfall, which was just the way Jayne liked it. He had brought a small pistol and a knife just in case, but he preferred not to use them. Especially around Kaylee. When they reached the waterfall, Kaylee stood gazing up at it.

"Wow," she said softly. "I've never seen anything so beautiful before."

"I have," Jayne said looking at her.

"Oh really," Kaylee answered slyly, "what's that?"

"Oh, this girl I know."

Kaylee just shook her head. She slipped the pack off his shoulder, took the blanket out, and spread it on the ground. She sat down with her legs stretched out in front of her and patted the blanket inviting him to sit next to her. He sat and put his arm around her pulling her closer. She leaned her head on his shoulder and continued gazing at the waterfall. He stared at it too, simply enjoying her company.

After a while he stretched his back and looked over at her. "I'm getting pretty hungry, Little Girl, what about you?"

She turned to look at him. "Why have you started calling me 'Little Girl?'"

Jayne shrugged. "Cause you're little and you're my girl."

"Does that mean I can come up with an embarrassing pet name for you?"

Jayne grimaced at the thought of the sort of pet names Kaylee was likely to come up with.

"Do you really want to get into a contest to see who can come up with the worst nickname...Thunder Chunky?"

Kaylee slapped his arm, "Don't call me that again unless you wanna die!"

Jayne smirked.

"Tell you what," she said, "if you can restrain yourself from coming up with anything worse than 'Little Girl,' I'll not call you anything worse than 'Honey,' 'Sweetie,' or 'Sweetheart.' Deal?"

"Deal," Jayne answered, feeling as though he'd just dodged a bullet.

Kaylee started laying out the picnic things while Jayne peeled and sliced the carrots and the cheese with his knife. Kaylee took the strawberries and vegetables down to the stream to wash them in the cool water. As they ate, Kaylee began to pick at her bread.

"Jayne when did you know that your feelings for me had changed...to being more than just the way you feel about a friend I mean?"

He chewed thoughtfully on a piece of cheese and swallowed it before answering. "I don't know. It sort of happened slowly. I'm not sure I really knew it for certain until after that ruttin' doctor came on board."

_Actually it was about the time that gorram fed shot you and I was certain you were going to die, _he thought. He didn't want to say it though; not today when everything was quiet and peaceful.

Kaylee grinned. "I thought you and Simon were friends now."

Jayne had been impressed buy how the doctor had taken the news about him and Kaylee. He was just as surprised as the rest of the crew at first. He had treated both Jayne and Kaylee a bit coldly for a week or two and then seemed to get over it. Further, proof of what Jayne had thought all along; the doctor had liked Kaylee okay, but was too wrapped up in dealing with his crazy sister to have time for developing a serious relationship. Kaylee had eased into a simple friendship with Simon after that. It had taken Jayne a bit more time to get over his old dislike, even though it had been based on jealousy.

"We are," he answered.

Once they were finished eating, Jayne helped Kaylee clear up the mess. It was nearly time for the sun to set over the waterfall, and Jayne laid back on the blanket to watch it. Kaylee snuggled up next to him, laying her head on his chest. He loosened her hair from it's twist and ran his fingers through it. He wondered how she managed to keep it so soft and silky with that homemade soap they all had to use on the ship.

"What's that smell?" Kaylee asked.

"I don't know. Smells like oranges. We didn't buy any oranges."

Kaylee reached over the edge of the blanket, plucked a few blades of grass, and lifted them to her nose. "It's the grass. Wonder how they managed that when they were terraforming this rock?"

She held the grass up for Jayne to smell. She was right, it smelled just like a freshly peeled orange.

"Pine trees and oranges, smells like Christmas," Jayne replied. "We always had oranges in our stockings at Christmas."

As the sun began to dip behind the waterfall, it turned the water an impressive reddish color. It almost looked as if it were liquid fire going over the cliff instead of water. Kaylee gasped in apparent delight.

"Ain't it amazing?"

"Yeah," Jayne answered truthfully.

Once the sun had set, the air really started to cool. Jayne felt Kaylee shivering beside him. He pulled his own jacket off and wrapped it around her. She sat up and pulled her arms through the sleeves, which went a good 7 inches past the tips of her fingers. She looked like a little girl playing dress up in her father's clothes. Jayne huffed in amusement at the idea.

"What?" Kaylee asked, looking down at him.

"Nothing, you're just cute," he answered and pulled her back down for a kiss.

Lying there under the stars with Kaylee in his arms, he felt like the richest man alive. Their kisses progressed from soft and sweet to more passionate. Jayne's fingers traced across the soft skin of her back and side. He knew better than to try and move too fast with a girl like Kaylee, so he pulled away from her and simply held her tight. She wasn't just another of his one-night stands. He had never felt this way about anyone before. When the realization hit him, he knew he had to tell her. After all, hiding his feelings for Kaylee had almost ended with her getting together with another man. He kissed the top of her head and whispered softly,

"I love you Kaylee."

His heart pounded and it seemed to take an eternity for her to reply.

"I love you too."

* * *

**A/N: **I took the pet name "Little Girl" from Bruce Springsteen's song "I'm on Fire." Listening to that song is a guilty pleasure of mine considering the subject matter. Since Mal and Jayne both call Kaylee "Little Kaylee" in the series, adapting the nickname seemed like the kind of thing Jayne would do.

Yes, Doctor Who fans, I did take the idea for the orange scented grass from the Apple Grass on New Earth. Also, I based the waterfall on Horsetail Fall in Yosemite National Park. There is a brief span of time in mid-February when the sunset hits the fall just right and it looks like lava flowing over the cliff. I thought it would probably take a similar phenomenon to actually impress Jayne.

Thank you to The Amazing Dave, crazyanaylst, badkarma00, and my one anonymous person for the review.

Also thanks to Kerichi not only for the review, but also for being an awesome beta. Everyone needs to check out her stories, she's a really fantastic writer.


End file.
